National Cancer Institute

A bill authorizing the first major federal study to look specifically at whether environmental factors play a role in breast and prostate cancer has been approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.The two-year study would be conducted by two of the federal government's premier research institutes -- the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences -- and would include elaborate environmental testing as well as in-depth questioning of hundreds or perhaps thousands of people.

WASHINGTON -- In response to an "epidemic" of cancer, particularly in the Middle Atlantic and Northeastern states, three Maryland lawmakers have backed legislation that would establish a national data bank to systematically track information about the disease.Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, D-Md., and Reps. Constance A. Morella, R-8th, and Kweisi Mfume, D-7th, are among co-sponsors of the Cancer Registries Amendments Act, which would establish cancer data banks in every state.Currently, 10 states lack cancer registers and there is no national repository for the information.

Women in electrical jobs are 38 percent more likely to die of breast cancer than other working women, according to a new study that found an even higher death rate among female telephone installers, repairers and line workers."

The easiest way to fill Towson University's Towson Center? Have Shirley Howard, founder and president of the Children's Cancer Foundation, throw a fund-raiser. More than 1,000 friends and supporters of the organization packed the building to enjoy a gourmet dinner and show by entertainer Ben Vereen. With many of the guests from the food industry, you knew it would be a boffo banquet. The gustatory gratification began at the cocktail reception, with hors d'oeuvres like Peking duck and New Zealand baby lamb chops.

Description: Two Johns Hopkins University scientists were awarded one of the National Cancer Institute's first grants intended to answer what it calls "provocative questions" in cancer research. They will receive more than $500,000 over a year as they study how and why infections can cause certain types of cancer and how cancer spreads. Other "provocative questions" focus on how obesity contributes to cancer risk, why some cancers can be cured by chemotherapy alone, and why some tumors become malignant after years of being benign.

WASHINGTON -- A federal advisory panel recommended yesterday a sweeping overhaul of the nation's anti-cancer campaign, predicting that at its present course, cancer will surpass heart disease as the nation's leading killer within five years.In a report to Congress, the group said that the program suffers from a lack of coordination and a shortage of funds needed to pursue "unprecedented opportunities" in scientific research.It said a White House-led effort -- including Cabinet-level representation -- was needed.

NEW YORK -- Death rates for most forms of cancer have continued to decline despite a surprising and inexplicable rise in the incidence of thyroid cancer in women, scientists reported yesterday. The report takes a decade-long look at cancer incidence and mortality in the United States. It was compiled by the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries, the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Cancer Society. Medical investigators report a 1.6 percent annual decline in cancer deaths for men from 1992 to 2003 and an 0.8 percent annual drop among women.

A rare genetic defect linked to breast and ovarian cancer is eight times more common among Jewish women of European ancestry, researchers announced yesterday, promising the first inexpensive community screening test for the most common cancer among American women.Researchers at the National Institutes of Health offered the first direct evidence that an easily detectable alteration in a known breast cancer gene is present not only in high-risk families but also in a specific ethnic group among the general population.

The overall rate of cancer among children is mounting steadily, and the increase for the two most common childhood malignancies, leukemia and brain tumors, is particularly sharp, the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda says in a new report.Researchers said that they had few clues to the reasons for the jump, and many are just now learning of the latest statistics.But scientists emphasized that childhood cancer remained relatively rare, amounting to an estimated 7,800 new cases this year, and some suggested that at least part of the apparent increase was probably a result of better detection and reporting of the disease.

Two new government studies show young people are still putting themselves at risk for skin cancer by getting sunburned and going to indoor tanning beds. One study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that half of those aged 18 to 29 had at least one sunburn it the past year, though they were increasingly using sunscreen, seeking shade and wearing protective clothing. The other study by the National Cancer Institute found 32 percent of those 18 to 21 were going to indoor tanning salons and 30 percent of those 22 to 25 were.